Unpolished Truths About Entrepreneurship

In honor of National Entrepreneurship Month, we leaned on several of our fellow business owners for their unpolished truths about what it’s really like to be an entrepreneur. We’re not talking about glossy Forbes profiles or aspirational TikToks. Instead, we asked our community of fellow entrepreneurs for their raw, unfiltered lessons that have come with choosing to build something from the ground up.

Truthfully, entrepreneurship is rarely glamorous. It’s messy, humbling, and at times overwhelming. And yet it’s also where some of the most meaningful growth and innovation happens.

We surveyed 20+ entrepreneurs across industries such as digital infrastructure, technology, clean energy, manufacturing, corporate real estate, marketing, and more. Here’s some of what they had to share:

You Get to Build Something That Reflects Your Values‍

“For myself and many founders, the motivation comes from building something that reflects our values and delivers meaningful impact to the industry.”

"[Entrepreneurship gives me] the autonomy to make decisions and have an immediate impact on the business, clients, and the community."

This is what draws people to entrepreneurship in the first place. The chance to create something meaningful, and to see the direct impact of your work on real people—clients, your team, and your community.

Instead of filling a role someone else designed, you're building something that reflects your values, vision, and unique approach to solving problems.

The wins feel even sweeter when you see a client succeed because of your work, or watch your team grow, or know you've made a tangible difference.

You'll Never Feel Truly "Off the Clock"

“It’s not just answering emails late at night—you’re thinking through strategy, forecasting risk, or planning for the next stage of growth.”

"Constant pressure of clients - really never being 'off' as an owner"

‍"The toll it can take on your mental health, personal and family life, especially when things are not going so well."

This theme showed up again and again in our survey. There's no shutting the laptop at 5 p.m. and forgetting about work until morning. As a founder, the business lives in your head—during dinner, on weekends, and in the middle of the night.

The unpolished truth is that the boundary between work and life is murky at best and often doesn’t exist. Nonetheless, you must learn to protect your mental health and personal relationships in order to survive (and, dare we say, thrive).

You Need to Build Grit and Grace in Equal Measure

“Sometimes grit isn’t about doing every task yourself, it’s about making decisions with incomplete information, taking risks, or leading your team through a pivot.”

"There are simply some days when you absolutely do not want to do the thing…But you have to do the thing nonetheless. This has been the most challenging part of entrepreneurship for me, but also the most rewarding."

‍"Business is messy, and there are often no clear solutions. The unpolished truth is that you have to learn how to give yourself grace and know you have done the best you can at the time you need to act."

Entrepreneurship asks you to show up and do the hard thing even when you don’t want to. And to also accept that you won't always have the perfect answer. 

You'll make decisions when you're tired. You'll act without knowing if it's the right call. And you'll need to be okay with that, because you still have to move things forward.

Being gritty means you’ll have to push through more times than you’ll want to. But you’ll need to learn to be kind to yourself in the process—that’s grace. Running a business requires both, and you’ll need to learn when to push harder and when to cut yourself some slack.

You'll Discover What You're Actually Capable Of

“Entrepreneurs are mostly ordinary people. What’s extraordinary is their desire, sacrifice, and hard work in pursuit of their idea.”

“You discover what you’re capable of not just in how you grow personally, but in what you’re able to build—teams, products, impact, and innovation.”

“[Entrepreneurship is] the best way to find out who you are and make an incredible impact at the same time.”

Entrepreneurship has a way of revealing what you're made of. You'll surprise yourself with what you can handle, especially when you look in the rearview mirror.

In running a business, you'll solve problems you never knew you'd face. You'll develop skills you didn't know you needed. You'll grow in ways that wouldn't have been possible in a traditional role.

It's uncomfortable. It can be intimidating. And yet, it's one of the most profound paths to personal growth you can take.

The challenges don't just build your business. They build you. This transformation is something you can proudly carry with you on your journey, no matter what the future holds.

The Loneliness Hits Different

‍"The truth is that it is lonely and incredibly rewarding at the same time. When you are wildly successful, often no one knows, and when you suffer devastating blows to your finances and/or your ego, often no one knows."

Being a founder can feel like carrying a secret no one else fully understands. Your wins are quiet. Your losses are private. You make decisions in isolation, carry weight others don't see, and sometimes wonder if anyone really gets it. 

Here's what we learned from these entrepreneurs: loneliness doesn't mean you're doing it wrong. It means you're in the arena, daring to try. And if you’re really struggling with the isolation, finding your people—mentors, fellow founders, or a trusted advisor—can make a huge difference.

The Financial Pressure Never Really Lets Up

‍"The stress behind making sure you make payroll."

‍"There is a need to reach an agreement with private equity ownership pre and post turning cash flow positive.”

‍"At the end of the day, bills have to get paid."

It's one thing to worry about your own income. It's another to know that your decisions affect whether someone else can pay their mortgage.

The weight of payroll, overhead costs, and cash flow sits heavy on every business owner's shoulders. Getting clients to pay on time is hard work. Chasing invoices takes energy. And if you’re backed by private equity or venture capital investors, they may not always share the same financial view of your business that you do—adding another layer of pressure to an already demanding role.

Unfortunately, the financial pressure doesn't disappear when you hit a certain revenue milestone. It just shifts. You learn to carry it differently, plan smarter, and build buffers where you can. But pressure and uncertainty are simply part of the entrepreneurial experience.

The Freedom is Often Worth The Sacrifice

‍"I suppose I've always been a bit of a non-conformist and…I felt really hemmed in by conventional workplaces and management structures. I wanted to spread my wings to experience what I was fully capable of, rather than boxing myself in for a role."

‍"The complete control and creativity to run the business the way I wanted to and knowing there was a gap in the market for my services."

Despite the loneliness, financial pressure, and mental health struggles, these entrepreneurs chose autonomy. They wanted to build something on their own terms. To see what they were truly capable of and run things the way they believed they should be run.

There’s something terrifying and gratifying about being the one who calls all the shots. The responsibilities are great, but so are the rewards. 

And for the right person, this makes everything else worth it.

A Note From Our Founder

Entrepreneurship is sometimes over-hyped, particularly in social media. We decided to share the real stories of our clients, partners, and friends, not to discourage others from pursuing entrepreneurship, but to pull back the curtain and show the things we can all relate to at different times.

The journey can be hard. The day-to-day can be messy. And the truth, well, it can be quite humbling. Behind every successful entrepreneur is a multitude of small failures, pivots, and lessons learned.

My biggest lesson learned from eight years of business ownership is that there is something to learn from every mistake, every challenge, every person, and every opportunity. And surrounding yourself with those who will challenge your thinking, be a mirror for you, and also have your back is one of the most important things you can do as you continue to grow and scale. 

“The best thing you can ever do is start. The worst thing you can ever do is fail. And the most amazing thing is as an entrepreneur, you have to do both to truly become successful. But it’s worth it.”

Curious about what inspired our Founder & CEO to start Flo. Marketing? Read her story here.